EU, UK Agree to Mention Gibraltar in Brexit Paper on Future Ties – Diplomat

MADRID (Sputnik) - UK and EU negotiators have agreed to guarantee Spain’s say on disputed Gibraltar in future trade talks, the Spanish secretary of state for the European Union, Aguiriano, said Friday.

"They have modified the text of the political declaration that we had an issue with … When we see that declaration and get that commitment in writing … the head of government will make the decision," the secretary Luis Marco Aguiriano said as quoted by the Expansion newspaper.

READ MORE: Gibraltar Minister: If Brexit Talks on Gibraltar Re-open, Other Issues to Follow

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and UK’s Theresa May tried to work out their differences on the tiny peninsula on the tip of Spain in a Thursday night phone call, but their positions "remain far away," according to Sanchez.

The phone call came after Madrid vowed to veto the Brexit package at Sunday’s summit of EU leaders unless the declaration on the future EU-UK trade ties mentioned the need for Spain’s approval to engage Gibraltar, a British overseas territory it claims a right to.